Spring has arrived!

     We see daffodils blooming everywhere, brilliantly yellow forsythias, and flowering trees covered with blossoms. Last week, we had an afternoon when the temperature reached 80˚. I posted a photo of a single crocus blossom a week ago, but I don't think we'll have any more.

These crocuses are tiny, but they have no blossoms.

Color in our flower bed

    About a week ago, I purchased a hyacinth plant for $2. It had buds, and a few days later, the buds opened, and we enjoyed the fragrance. It's incredible how one little plant can provide such a beautiful smell.

I plan to plant this in the flower bed.
I should buy some more!

    I've had three planters on the edge of our driveway each summer. This spring, I had the brainy idea to bring the planters inside and sow seeds to get an early start on the growing season. I had several packets of wildflower seeds, so I scattered them on top of the soil and watered them on Monday. I was surprised to see green sprouts on Friday!

This is an interesting experiment!
Will we eventually see some blossoms?

    I had another incident with the male goose on Tuesday. I didn't see him because he was hidden by a parked car. The goose doesn't appear as malicious but is trying to shove me out of the way. On Thursday, I was smart and avoided the area.

    We had a birthday celebration for one of our bridge players on Thursday. She was celebrating her 99th birthday. One of the other members made this delicious angel food cake that we all enjoyed after singing Happy Birthday. 

Sarah lives alone and drives her stick shift car!

    We learned that our brother-in-law, Bob Zielke, went to his heavenly home on Friday. He celebrated his 98 birthday last November and has been in declining health. We are making plans to attend his funeral service on Friday. 

    The Final Four is set for next weekend, with the four top seeds meeting on Saturday.  This is only the second time in history that all four top seeds made it to the Final Four!

    We've had an overcast day with storms late in the afternoon. May we all have sunny skies this week.

Our Third Winter

    We've had hints of spring, and then cold weather returns. More on that later. Last Tuesday was one of the warmer mornings, perfect for a jog. As I headed home, I saw a pair of geese in the distance. From my experiences with Canada geese, I knew I should take a wide path around them. However, the male goose didn't think it was wide enough and flew three or four times at me. Interestingly, he flew right over my head but could have hit me broadside if he wanted to. I could feel flapping wings on my head. But after the last attempt, even though I was still in his area, he stopped and let me go on my way. I didn't see a nest, but he protected his mate and future fledglings.

File Photo--Geese are notorious for protecting
their mate during nesting season

    The weather was perfect for a trip to clean up one of the church beds, so we spent an hour there after returning from my jog. In the afternoon, we found a live feed of the return of four astronauts and their splashdown in the Gulf of America. We watched the crews load the capsule on a rescue ship, and the astronauts emerge, one by one. I was impressed with the precision of the entire operation.

    We stopped for lunch at Arni's on Wednesday for my birthday pizza. The restaurant offers a free personal pizza and sends a yearly reminder that we take advantage of it. Ray enjoyed a bowl of soup while I ate my pizza. We had been hearing predictions for storms for several days, but they didn't arrive until early evening. The TV shows we planned to watch were interrupted by the storms in the area. The weather reporters explained where the worst storms were. We had rain, but there were tornadoes and winds in many areas of the state. 

    The next day was the first day of Spring, but it didn't feel that way. Because of the storms of the night before, we woke up to temperatures in the 20s on Thursday. While playing Bridge, Purdue was playing High Point, but we got to watch the replay when we got home. Then they had an easy time against McNeese in their second game and are playing in the Sweet 16 next weekend in Indianapolis.

    This is the third spring for the crocus bulbs I planted, but they have hardly bloomed. I was surprised to see one blossom a few days ago, but I hope to have more blossoms this week or next. The blossom is tiny, so I may have purchased the wrong size of bulbs. I had hoped for a big display of crocuses. I'm ready with rabbit repellant since rabbits can create havoc before the plant blooms.

It may be small, but it is big
enough to cast a shadow

    I'll be sure to post a photo if there is a good display of crocuses this spring. Keeping my fingers crossed. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day

    As I write, a beef brisket is cooking for our supper.  I also made a cabbage casserole to accompany the corned beef and will add small red potatoes and cooked carrots to our St. Patrick's Day meal.

Garden Goose celebrating St. Patrick's Day

    Last Tuesday was a beautiful day, perfect for some outdoor chores. We replaced a lamp in the outdoor garage fixture. Then, it was time to clean up some of the leaves left from last fall. We ended up filling two large trash bags.

Notice the hydrangea bushes in the
background. They still need pruning.

    Even though my birthday wasn't until Sunday, I enjoyed some birthday cake on Thursday when one of the bridge group members baked a delicious mandarin orange cake. After we came home from playing bridge, we took advantage of the warm and sunny weather for our first patio use in 2025. 

    Yesterday, for my 87th birthday, I received many greetings at church, and one friend gave me a small Schefflera plant. We visited with Bart and Persephone on a Zoom call. Persephone told us about her experience in a United Nations simulation in Baton Rouge, representing the countries of St. Kitts and Nevis. We enjoyed a meal at Olive Garden and a free birthday dessert in the evening.

   We've finished our evening meal, and the brisket and cabbage were tasty. The cabbage casserole was more than we could eat, so I won't make it again unless I take it to a pitch-in.

Spring Forward

     Did you remember to set your clocks ahead? I wish all our clocks were like my watch, which automatically reset itself in the middle of the night. I had to reset the kitchen wall clock, stove, microwave clocks, and bedroom alarm clock. I still have to reset Ray's watch, which is challenging, but we have the instruction manual!

    We are now in the season of Lent. Even though the weather wasn't pleasant for Ash Wednesday services last Wednesday, about 70 people came to the supper. We had two services: one at 4 p.m. and the second at 6:30. Ray and I went to the first service and took part in the imposition of ashes. The meal was served after the service. 

"Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

    For the remaining five Wednesday Lenten services, a meal is planned at 5:15 p.m., but only one service at 6:30 p.m. 

    On Thursday, after we finished playing bridge, we drove to Bloomington. Christy and Persephone were in town to help Christy's dad, who was recovering from a health problem. Christy, Susie, her mother, and Persephone met us at the Farm, a restaurant on Kirkwood Avenue near the center square. We shared a plate of caramelized Brussels sprouts as an appetizer. Ray and I shared Roasted French-cut chicken. Persephone ordered the Lugar Burger (made with Bison), Susie had shrimp, and Christy a beef filet with smashed potatoes. We all enjoyed the food and then, too soon, had to say farewell as we drove back to Greenwood.

A farewell hug and then a photo

    When I have time, I enjoy listening to several different podcasts. The Lutheran Ladies Lounge podcast reviews a book several times yearly. Recently, they selected Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, which I read. Another book club selection was That Hideous Strength by C. S. Lewis, which was a difficult read.

    Several weeks ago, they announced that they had selected Jonathon Haidt's The Anxious Generation for discussion on their Facebook page. I've been reading the book for the past week. It definitely is not my usual kind of book. It's like a textbook with lots of statistics and graphs. Mr. Haidt is a social psychologist and Thomas Cooley Professor of Ethical Leadership at the New York University Stern School of Business.
These aren't my words, but the following paragraph is from a review of the book:

"Jonathan Haidt explores the causes and consequences of the epidemic of anxiety and depression among young people in the Western world. He argues that the decline of play-based childhood and the rise of phone-based childhood are the main factors behind the mental health crisis."

    He also calls the advent of Smartphones the "great rewiring of childhood," especially when phones are given to children at a young age. These children don't have the experiences they need to grow to have a balanced and healthy life. 

    I'm halfway through the book and the second half is his recommendation on correcting the imbalance in our young people's lives. The iPhone entered the market in 2007, and by the mid-2010s, Gen X was in a mental health crisis. Today's Parents have much more to deal with than when we raised our children. 

    Are you ready for March Madness? We watched IU defeat Ohio State yesterday in a close game. If they do well in the Big 10 tournament this week, they can qualify for the NCAA tournament. 

    We'll have a wonderful week, four or five days in the 60s or even as high as 70 with sunny, clear skies. I'm looking forward to that.

Water Woes

     Last Monday, we learned what caused us to hear a strange sound in our kitchen. I don't recall when we first heard what sounded like a light humming noise. It was around for a while, but we didn't always listen to it because other sounds in the house, such as the TV, washer, etc., covered the sound. The sound was more unmistakable when I opened the cabinet under the kitchen sink, but I should not have ignored it. 

    On Monday, I heard the same sound and, on a hunch, decided to check the outdoor water spigot. All the snow had melted, and it was easy to walk to the side of the house to see the water faucet running. Neither Ray nor I could turn off the water. It was late afternoon, and our landlord had us call the plumbing company he usually hires. They were about to close for the day and an appointment was made early the next morning.

    When I realized the outdoor spigot was running, I wondered if there was any way to turn off the water until the plumber arrived, but I didn't find anything.  As you might have already guessed, the shutoff for the outdoor spigot was under the kitchen sink, and the plumber found it after not seeing it in the garage. He cut a hole in the drywall in our sunroom, made the necessary repairs and covered the hole with a grille. It is located in an inconspicuous area of the house.

Repaired Pipe

Grille Covers the Hole

    Now we are waiting for our next water bill. It could be considerably higher than usual.

    On Thursday, after playing bridge and having an early dinner with some of our bridge friends, we headed to the Artcraft Theater in Franklin, sponsored by the Johnson County Library, to hear author J.C. Box. For those who don't recognize the name, Box has authored 25 books about Game Warden Joe Pickett. Patrons received a copy of his newest book, Battle Mountain, only published two days earlier. Most of the Joe Pickett stories take place in Wyoming, which Box knows well since he's a native and lives there. He read a few paragraphs from his new book and then answered questions from the audience. I stood in line to get his autograph and Ray took this photo.

J.C. Box and me

        As we were about to leave church for home this morning, we learned that the Pastor we had hoped would come, declined our call. Instead of coming to Greenwood, he accepted a call to a church in Iowa. Three pastors have declined a call to be Concordia's shepherd. We have a friendly church community, but it's hard to understand why three men have decided not to come. From what I've heard, the first pastor's wife was pregnant and it wasn't a good time for them to make a move. Fortunately, we now have an interim pastor and our church leaders don't have to rely on finding guest speakers each week as they did the first year of this vacancy.

    Since March came in as a Lion, we hope to have some Lamb weather in a few weeks!